


Special Delivery

by heyjupiter



Category: Black Panther (2018), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Science Boyfriends, Science Bros
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-09-07 16:34:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16857517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyjupiter/pseuds/heyjupiter
Summary: When Peter leaves for a semester abroad in Wakanda, Bruce and Tony send him care packages. When Peter returns from Wakanda, he brings back gifts for Bruce and Tony to return the favor.





	Special Delivery

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HyperchaoticStarlight (MVPYurio)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MVPYurio/gifts).
  * Inspired by [it was always them](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15099812) by [HyperchaoticStarlight (MVPYurio)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MVPYurio/pseuds/HyperchaoticStarlight). 



> This is my gift for HyperchaoticStarlight for the [Science Bros Discord Secret Santa exchange](https://discord.gg/2dzyzNP). I hope you enjoy it, Lia! It's lightly inspired by [it was always them](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15099812), your delightful story about Bruce & Tony's Target run.
> 
> This fic takes place in a loose alternate timeline in which the events of the MCU through Thor: Ragnarok occurred, but Infinity War never did.
> 
> Thank you to my lovely beta volunteerfd; if Target ever offers to pay me for this amateur #sponcon I pledge to share the proceeds with you.

Bruce was carefully spooning cookie dough onto a baking sheet when he felt Tony's arms slip around his waist from behind. Right in his ear, Tony said, "Bruce, my treasure, how could you do this to me? You _know_ I'm trying to eat low carb."

Bruce laughed and turned to kiss Tony on the cheek in greeting. " _You_ know that the best diet is just to eat from all food groups in moderation, Tony." 

"You're just saying that because you don't like me when I'm hangry."

"Also because it's factual." Despite Bruce's best efforts, Tony persisted in trying fad diets whenever he was feeling stressed about something else. He'd started eschewing carbs the day before Peter had left for Wakanda. But Ben & Jerry's had convinced him to reintroduce dairy into his diet; maybe Bruce's cookies could redeem carbs.

"Whatever. Not all of us have superhuman metabolisms, you know. What kind are these, anyway?" Tony stuck a finger in the bowl of dough and grabbed a bite, apparently not counting uncooked carbs. "Ooh, peanut butter."

Bruce knew by now that it was a lost cause to warn Tony about salmonella, but he did move the bowl further away from Tony's grasp to prevent him from taking more. "Speaking of superhuman metabolisms, these aren't actually for you. They're for Peter."

"Babe, you know Peter's in Wakanda, right? He's not coming over for dinner anytime soon."

"Well, yeah, that's why I'm making him cookies. I was going to send him a care package?"

"A care package? You're going to _reward_ him for _leaving us_?"

Bruce laughed at Tony's melodramatic outrage. "He's just doing a semester abroad, Tony, he'll be back. And it's a really good opportunity for him."

Tony huffed, "I mean, an internship with Stark Industries is also a great opportunity."

"He's been 'interning' with SI since he was 15, Tony. Let him spread his wings. So to speak."

"Spread his web fluid? Nope, that's gross, forget I said it."

"Already done. Excuse me a second," Bruce said, squirming out from Tony's embrace to get a fork. He began delicately pressing a criss-cross pattern into each ball of dough. Tony came around the other side of the kitchen island to watch him work. Bruce looked up and smiled at the openly adoring expression on Tony's face. They'd been together for years and Bruce still couldn't help but feel surprised every time he was reminded that Tony Stark really, truly loved him. He'd never thought he would be lucky enough to find anyone who would love him, let alone someone like Tony.

Oblivious to Bruce's romantic inner monologue, Tony said, "You just do that with a fork, huh? Seems like there should be some kind of specialized cookie press."

"The fork works just fine."

"But it could probably be _better_ , right?" Tony mused. 

Bruce could just hear wheels spinning in Tony's brain as he attempted to solve this problem that wasn't really a problem, and it made him feel such a burst of fondness for Tony that he offered, "You know, after this I could probably make you some zucchini cookies."

Horrified, Tony said, "Oh no, Bruce, are you _mad at me_? I'm so sorry. What did I do?"

"...no I just...thought they'd be low carb? If that's really what you want to do?" Bruce slid the peanut butter cookies in the oven and set a timer.

"Oh, thank god. No, I'll eat real cookies and complain about it, thank you very much."

"But not these cookies. Because these cookies are for Peter," Bruce reminded him.

"I'm sure they have cookies in Wakanda. It's a very advanced country."

"I'm sure they do, too. But I just thought it would be nice to show him that we're thinking of him, and maybe send some things he couldn't easily get in Wakanda."

"Hmm. What else are you sending?"

"I was just trying to think of American stuff that can be hard to get in other countries, stuff he might miss. Peanut butter, for one."

"Is that what you missed when you were...abroad? Peanut butter?"

"It was one of the things, yes." Bruce wasn't sure if Tony meant Sakaar or India; either way, he _had_ missed American-style peanut butter.

"If I had known, I would have launched peanut butter into space."

Bruce smiled faintly. "That would have been nice." He would have preferred a ride home, but he knew Tony still felt guilty about not having found Bruce, even though that had been years ago, and Bruce had made himself pretty impossible to find. Well, Hulk had.

"What else did you miss?"

Bruce knew that Tony was fishing, but he was happy to take the bait. He washed his hands, then walked around the counter and pulled Tony's face to his for another quick kiss. "You, of course," he said. "But I can't mail _you_ to Wakanda."

"The postage _would_ be prohibitive. Let's just go visit him!"

"Tony, I miss Peter too, but we have to give him a chance to settle in. The semester just started last week."

"Okay...what if we sent him DUM-E? DUM-E could benefit from a study abroad experience."

"You know you'd miss DUM-E. Besides, Peter probably has better bots in Wakanda."

"I'm telling DUM-E you said that."

"You say worse things to DUM-E on a daily basis."

"Yeah, that's why he likes you more than he likes me. I need to level the playing field a little."

"Fine, if you want to be a snitch."

"Snitches get kisses!" Tony said, leaning in to give Bruce a kiss.

"I don't think that's how it goes…"

"I'm an innovator. Get with the times. Stitches are so last year."

"That's true, I guess. Snitches get liquid dermal adhesive?"

"No, kisses," Tony insisted.

Bruce laughed. "Okay, I guess you make a good point."

"Of course I do. All of my points are good."

"Mm-hmm." 

"God, these cookies smell amazing. And they're going to be wasted on Peter, you know, they won't even be warm when they get there."

The timer went off, and Bruce pulled the cookies out of the oven. "You can have _one_ , if you're really okay with stealing food out of the mouth of a hungry teenage boy."

"Hmm, yeah, I feel great about that," Tony said, grabbing one and taking a big bite. "Ooh, I think I burned my tongue but it was worth it."

Bruce shook his head, but couldn't quite keep a fond smile off his face.

"So what else are we sending Peter?" Tony asked. 

"Besides DUM-E, you mean? I'm not sure. Probably some Doritos? He likes those."

"We don't have any Doritos. Not that I was looking for them or anything."

"Yeah, I was going to make a quick Target run."

"Ooh, can I come?"

"As long as you promise to keep it _quick_."

"I will do my best."

"That's good enough, I guess. Let's go now, it shouldn't be too crowded at this hour."

"Yeah, suckers with real jobs are still at work."

"And everyone's done with back to school shopping."

At Target, Bruce put a jar of creamy peanut butter and two bags of Doritos (Nacho Cheese _and_ Cool Ranch) in the cart and studied the rest of the snack aisles, trying to think what might ship well. He thought Reese's Cups might melt, but decided to risk it. He realized that he'd lost Tony, which wasn't unusual. Tony was probably still at the entrance to the store, taking selfies with his fans in the Dollar Spot.

Bruce carried on shopping, efficiently unencumbered by admirers as he added packing tape and a large cardboard box to the cart. He was pretty sure they already had packing tape somewhere at the compound, but he didn't feel good about his chances of finding it in a timely manner. Eventually Tony turned up with his arms full of stuff. "Hey, what'd you find?"

"Well, I got him this Avengers coloring book, in case he gets bored. And an Iron Man action figure, in case he misses me. And this plush Hulk, in case he misses you!"

"Oh, put that back, it's awful."

"What? No, it's so cute. And soft!" Tony squeezed the Hulk. 

Inside Bruce's head, Hulk grumbled, _Hulk not soft!_

Bruce sighed and thought reassuringly, _Of course you're not, nobody thinks that. It's just a toy. Because some people like you so much they want to give you to their children to play with._

_Hulk like play!_

_I know you do, but please, not at Target._

Hulk sullenly retreated back into Bruce's mind. Aloud, Bruce said, "He's in college, we're not sending him a stuffed animal. Especially not one as...unsettling as that one."

"Fine, then I'm getting it for me."

Bruce crossed his arms. "You cannot put that in our bed."

"I'll bring it with me when I have to travel without you!"

"...fine," Bruce said, because that was actually pretty cute. Hulk agreed, radiating a quiet happiness in the back of Bruce's mind. Tony smiled and put the plush Hulk in the cart. "Did you get crayons to go with the coloring book?"

"Like you said, he's in college. Colored pencils are _way_ better," Tony said, placing more items in the cart.

"Okay," Bruce said with a laugh. "Wait, are those condoms?"

"Didn't we just establish that he's in college?"

"He'll be embarrassed. Besides, they probably get them from student health services or something."

"There's nothing embarrassing about safer sex, Brucie-goosey. Besides, what if they run out?"

Bruce considered for a moment and then acquiesced with a shrug. He'd rather Peter endure a moment's embarrassment than be unprepared. He surveyed the cart and concluded, "This seems like a pretty good assortment, right?"

"Yeah, this should be enough to remind him of what he's missing out on. It's too bad we can't send him a pizza. Wait, can we send him a pizza?"

"I mean, I guess you could pack a frozen one in dry ice, but it doesn't really seem worth the effort?"

"Not for frozen pizza, no," Tony agreed. "Well, good, that just means he'll have to come back to New York."

"I'm sure he was going to anyway. It's just a semester abroad."

"Mm-hmm, that's how it starts, and then the next thing you know, he's completely off the radar for two years."

Bruce sighed and put his arm around Tony's waist. "You know it's not the same thing, Tony. He'll be back in December."

"He'd better be," Tony muttered. He put his arm around Bruce's shoulders and said, "Let's get out of here."

"I couldn't agree more."

This Target was the closest one to the Avengers' facility upstate, so most of the employees were pretty used to seeing Earth's Mightiest Heroes buying their snacks and shampoo. Still, the cashier did a double take and looked at Tony with wide eyes as she scanned the Iron Man toy.

"I feel like you should get a discount on this, but I don't have a code for my register, I'd have to ask my manager," she said, sounding stressed. 

"I think he can afford it full price," Bruce said, as he carefully unfolded their reusable canvas bags.

"Oh, ha, right," the cashier said. "Well, um, thanks for shopping at Target, and saving the world and all."

"All in a day's work," Tony said airily. He took a quick selfie with her before helping Bruce carry their bags to the car.

On their way to the post office, Tony said, "You know, I think it would probably be faster if we just took a quick trip to Wakanda to drop this off in person."

"And deprive Peter of the fun of getting mail?"

"Getting a visit from me--us--is way more fun than getting mail!"

"How about if we send this care package now and video chat with him tonight?"

"I guess that will work," Tony grumbled. 

Bruce reached over and squeezed Tony's knee. "I miss him too, but it's just four months, Tony."

"Four months? You don't think he'll come home for Thanksgiving?"

"I think...you have plenty of time to engineer a drone that will deliver a pumpkin pie to Wakanda," Bruce said, knowing that the best way to help Tony's melancholy mood was to distract him with a new project.

"Pfft, that won't take me that long. Although, it does have its own set of challenges, because pies are fragile, so it'll need some extra stabilization."

"And they require refrigeration."

"Oh, that part's easy," Tony said, and launched into an excited outline of a new coolant technology he'd been working on. Bruce smiled, confident that they'd all make it through Peter's semester abroad.

* * *

"Bruce, light of my life, is there any coffee left?"

"Just the dregs. I was going to make another pot but we're out of grounds down in the lab." Bruce yawned and stretched. "I could get more from the kitchen, but maybe it's time to stop for the day anyway?"

"Yeah. I hate to admit it but I'm feeling kind of stuck. I was hoping coffee would fix it."

"Maybe eating an actual dinner of actual food will help, too?"

"I guess we could test that hypothesis. You want to cook or go out?"

"Hmm. Hey, FRIDAY, can you show please me what's in the fridge?" Bruce asked.

"You got it, Dr. Banner," FRIDAY replied, and projected a holographic replica of the contents of the upstairs fridge. Bruce was considering their options when he heard the lab door slide open. There were only a handful of people who could access this lab without specific permission. Pepper avoided the lab at all costs, Rhodey had gone to visit his mom for the holidays, and…

"Peter!" Tony exclaimed, briskly walking toward the open door. Bruce smiled as Tony pulled Peter into a tight hug. "I thought you weren't coming home until next week."

"Well, I, uh, thought I'd surprise you guys. Surprise! My friend Shuri really wanted to go to a concert in the city, so she helped me finish my final project early."

Peter looked good, suntanned and taller than Bruce remembered. But then Bruce's eyes flicked behind Peter and noticed the elegant young woman standing behind him. He waved away the fridge hologram and got up to embrace Peter. He whispered, "Peter, is that the princess? Should I bow or something?"

"Oh! Sorry, I was going to introduce you. Um, Mr. Stark, Dr. Banner, this is my friend Shuri."

Bruce twitched. Peter hadn't answered his question, and Bruce had no idea what the protocol was for meeting a teenage genius princess. He nervously ran a hand through his hair, unsure if he'd remembered to comb it that morning. Tony calmly extended his hand and said, "Lovely to meet you, princess."

"Please, call me Shuri," she said, with a casual wave.

"Then you should call me Tony. I've been trying to get Peter to stop calling me Mr. Stark for years but he persists."

"Sorry, Mr. Stark, it's just habit," Peter said sheepishly.

"In my culture, we address our elders with respect."

Peter laughed. "That's hilarious, Shuri. I've heard the way you talk to King T'Challa."

"That's different. He's my _brother_ ," Shuri said, with an eyeroll that would give Tony a run for his money.

Bruce said, "Hi, um, Shuri, it's so nice to meet you. Uh, should I bow or something?"

She smiled at him warmly. "That's very unnecessary, Dr. Banner. It's nice to meet you, too. I have heard so much about you both. And I appreciated the American foods you sent to Peter very much."

"Yeah, Dr. Banner is a way better baker than May."

"Oh...thanks, and you're welcome?"

"We brought gifts, to thank you for your hospitality," Shuri said formally. "And especially for all of the cookies." She took a tote bag off her shoulder and presented Tony and Bruce with what looked like beautiful Basotho blankets; Tony's in red and gold and Bruce's in green and purple. 

"Wow, this is beautiful, thank you!" Bruce said. Hulk mentally hummed his approval as Bruce traced his finger over the elaborate woven pattern. His brows furrowed in recognition. "Wait, is this…"

"They are mostly wool, but there is a fine vibranium alloy thread running through the pattern. It gives them a protective quality," Shuri explained.

"These are amazing," Tony said. Bruce knew that Tony was itching to test out their armor capacity, but he hoped that Tony would wait until Shuri left before he started shooting at the lovely gifts.

Peter had been idly pacing the lab while Bruce and Tony chatted with Shuri. Now Peter beckoned and said, "Oh! Shuri, this is DUM-E." DUM-E beeped and extended his claw.

"Aww, he's so cute," Shuri said. 

"I built him when I was in college," Tony said.

"Oh, an antique American robot!" Shuri replied, with genuine delight. She bent down to study DUM-E more closely. "Fascinating."

Bruce laughed quietly as Tony tried and failed to keep a look of horror off of his face. Tony finally cleared his throat and said, "Well, since you're here, would you like a tour of the place, Shuri?"

"What time is your concert? Do you need to leave soon?" Bruce asked.

"Oh, no, it was last night. We stayed with May and then today we went to the Museum of Natural History and then came up to visit you guys."

"Who did you see?"

"Beyonce," Shuri said in a reverent tone. "I have seen her before but it was incredible to see her perform at Madison Square Garden. I love New York!"

"She was awesome," Peter chimed in. "And Shuri got us all the _best_ seats. I thought MJ and Ned were going to _die_."

"Yeah, I don't think anything we have here is going to compete with Beyonce," Bruce said.

"Perhaps not, but I am still very interested to see your facility! Peter has told me about it." 

Tony proudly led her around the lab, showing off some of the world's most advanced technology. Occasionally, Peter chimed in to point something out and compare it to its Wakandan counterpart. Shuri absorbed everything with polite interest. 

"It probably doesn't compare to what you have in Wakanda, does it?" Bruce asked.

Earnestly, she replied, "Oh, it is very interesting to me to see what different solutions you must come up with when you do not have access to vibranium! You've done extremely innovative things with what you have."

Bruce and Peter both laughed at the expression on Tony's face. Shuri added, "You'll have to come see my facility in Wakanda! Peter has already been such a helpful collaborator. I think we could learn a lot from each other."

"That would be great," Bruce said. Tony was uncharacteristically speechless, but he nodded.

The tour wound up back at the work table where they'd started, and Shuri curiously eyed the project Bruce and Tony had been about to abandon for the day. "And what is this?"

"Oh, we were just about to take a break from that," Bruce said. He ran a hand through his hair and explained, "We've been trying to put together some new medical applications for Tony's nanite technology. But of course it's tricky, because there's such potential to cause real harm if it's not done exactly right. Here, take a look at what we've got." He popped up a holographic projection of their design.

Shuri studied it thoughtfully for a long moment, manipulating the model with her hands and nodding to herself. Then she gave them a dazzling smile. "But this is incredible! I have been working on something very similar myself." She tapped her bracelet and showed them a holographic model of her own.

Tony and Bruce saw it at the same time. In unison, they said, "Oh! Yours has--"

Shuri nodded and cut them off excitedly. "Yes! But my design is unfortunately _too_ efficient, which can cause scarring. But…" She pulled apart her design and effortlessly combined it with Bruce and Tony's. "You see?"

"Brilliant!" Tony said. 

Bruce put on his reading glasses and studied the new model with cautious optimism. "I mean, we'll still need to test it."

"Yes, of course," Shuri said. "But this _will_ work."

"It will _definitely_ work," Tony said. "This is going to help so many people!" Shuri held out her hand for a fist bump, and Tony enthusiastically complied. "Peter, I'm so glad you went to Wakanda."

Bruce hid a smile behind his hand. Tony apparently sensed it anyway and elbowed him. Bruce cleared his throat and said, "Uh, well, when you guys got here, we were actually just about to take a dinner break. Did you guys already eat? I could cook something, or we could go out? If...you want?"

Shuri smiled. "Actually, there is another place I have wished to visit. Peter has told me all about...Target?"

"Yeah, Wakandan food is actually really good but I missed the Target snack bar," Peter confessed.

Bruce exchanged glances with Tony. "It'll be crowded…" Bruce said.

"I'll drive!" Tony said.

Target the week before Christmas was a nightmare hellscape, just as Bruce had known it would be. Still, as he sat in a cramped booth at the Target snack bar, holding Tony's hand as he watched the smartest person he'd ever met try a cherry Icee for the first time while Peter tossed popcorn high in the air before catching it in his mouth, Bruce knew there was no place he'd rather be.


End file.
